How Expendible Is Glen Perkins? Enough to Get Freddy Sanchez?

First of all I would like to apologize to any Glen Perkins fans out there (if any).  I'm not writing this article to bash Glen Perkins even though he did just recently give up 8 ER in 1 IP.  The reason why I'm writing this article is to emphasize the fact that Glen Perkins is expendible.

In 2008 Glen Perkins was introduced to the starting rotation while filling in for Francisco Liriano.  He ended up having a pretty decent year with 12 wins and a 4.41 ERA.  This gave Twins Fans a sense of hope and promise for 2009, but like most young pitchers Glen Perkins couldn't hold that level of consistency and has ended up failing miserably this year.  Perkins is only 26 years old and still has plenty of time to live up to his potential but as all fans would express, "We just want to win now."  As a fan I think the best way to achieve that motive would be to trade Glen Perkins.  For anybody who thinks that we can't afford to trade Mr. Perkins, just take a look at what we have for potential replacements.  

1.  Anthony Swarzak......he's done a great job filling in for Kevin Slowey and would definately be, at the very least, an adequate replacement for Perkins.  As of right now Perkins has given up 52 ER in 84 1/3 innings.  Swarzak has given up 18 ER in 39 innings.  In order for Swarzak to replicate or god forbid be more deficient he would have to give up at least 34 ER in his next 45 innings (7-9 starts) or average an atrocious 6.75 ERA.  I'LL TAKE MY CHANCES!

2.  Brian Duensing......Yes I already know that he has a 6.71 ERA and that he hasn't exactly been Mr. Reliable out of the bullpen, but there is some positives to take out his short major league experience.  First off you have a small sample size to judge Duensing on (16 IP).  Secondly, being a reliever is a whole new gig to him.  Throughout most of his minor league career Duensing has been a starter and definately deserves a chance to become one in the bigs.

3.  Kevin Mulvey and Phillip Humber.....The former was just brought up to the majors and the latter had a Brian Duensing-Like effect in the bullpen.  Both have been minor league starters and both also deserve a shot at the rotation.

Now that you've seen all of the potential Perkins replacements, it makes it quite obvious that the Twins could afford to deal Perkins to another team such as the Pirates.  The question now becomes who else would we need to include in a Freddy Sanchez swap.  The answer is actually really simple.  The Pittsburgh Pirates, as of late, have been known to overvalue the quality of talent that they receive in many of their fairly one-sided trades. 

Example: The infamous Jason Bay Trade.  Even I, a lousy midwest baseball fan, could have seen how crappy and ineffective Brandon Moss was in Boston to understand that the impact he would have in Pittsburgh would be nothing more than meteocre.  I think that everyone would agree that the players they got in return for their All-Star Jason Bay wouldn't really be the type of core players that you build a franchise around.  The more important thing to take out of this deal is the fact that the Buc's brass actually believed that they were receiving good, quality talent.  Over the past five years the Twins have managed to collect a good portion of overvalued talent.  Just to name a few:

Brian Buscher.....currently batting just above the mendoza line.  Pittsburgh's Perception: A quality young bat who would compliment Mr. LaRoche, possibly creating one of the most formidable 3rd Base platoons in the majors.

Nick Punto.....also hovering around the mendoza line, with declining range and defensive ability.  Pittsburgh's Perception: An adequate Freddy Sanchez replacement with a great glove.  Future Pittsburgh Bobblehead!

So would it really be too unrealistic to believe that the Pirates would agree to a Glen Perkins-Nick Punto-Brian Buscher for Freddy Sanchez swap? Heck No!  The only problem would be convincing Gardy and Bill Smith that the return they would get in Freddy Sanchez would far outweigh the gain they would receive in keeping Perkins, Buscher, and Punto. Both Punto and Buscher could easily be replaced from within:

Trevor Plouffe, Danny Valencia, Mark Grudzelanek, Luke Hughes.....

In order for the Twins to have a shot at the playoffs they have to get more production at 2nd Base.  Freddy Sanchez is the perfect candidate to fill this void.  If you don't believe me take a look at his .306 BA.  With the addition of Freddy Sanchez and the potential impact of a Danny Valencia at 3B, I like the Twins odds as the AL Central Champs.

Finally, I understand the fact that most Minnesota Twins fans would probably be wondering why were not looking for another bullpen arm.  As deceiving as the Twin's bullpen has been, they're bullpen is actually ranked 8th in the majors with a swell 3.62 ERA.  My advice would be to leave the bullpen alone and concentrate on getting an infield bat like Freddy Sanchez instead.  This deal needs to get done if the Twins want to remain competitive.